Allison has recently had to have some dental work done. Like many others she is a bit apprehensive about going to the dentist. We are grateful for many good dentists to choose from. We are also thankful to have the ability to make the short drive to Kijabe and have a great dentist while in Kenya too.

It is a big day in Kenya today! December 12th marks the day of independence from the UK and the day of the establishment as a republic. Jamhuri furaha siku!

image from mapsofworld.com

I, Allison, recently burned my hand pretty badly while making some chai. This has made me extremely thankful to not have had a horrible burn over the majority of my body. Burns from accidents due to cooking fires are very common around many parts of the world. I am thankful that SIM’s little clinic in Doro was able to have a burn unit of sorts to help the communities around. If anyone out there would like the opportunity to use some of their medical training in a field like Sudan for a few months or years please let us know. The need for staff is always great.

This is big folks. Northern Sudan forces took control over the South Sudan town of Jau over this past weekend. From an article on the Sudan Tribune website, they mentioned some of the reasoning behind the attack. “One of the reasons why they are fighting the Jau Payam was because they want to take over the areas which are under [control] of South Sudan and [housing] the Sudanese refugees from the north. They are attacking Jau because they believe it is the base of SPLM/A north hideout that they use to fight them in the South Kordofan State”, said Bilkuey.

Yesterday, Salva Kiir, the president of South Sudan, requested the US Army impose a no-fly zone along the North/South boarder of the Sudans. You can read more about that here.

Today was a fun day for the Martyns. Taylor and Avery came out to support Allison as she ran the whiterock half marathon in the cold rain. Thanks to her running buddy, Cat, they made it!

We also received a sneak peak at some recent family pictures we had taken. Check out our college buddy, Janae’s website to view them! Can’t wait to have some recent pictures of our whole family to use to update our blog!

We will try to summarize the many happenings from the situation in Sudan/South Sudan. There has been a lot of flip flop in talk from the North about if they will continue to refine and export the South’s oil. The ICC prosecutor, Luis Moreno-Ocampo, requested an issue of a warrant to arrest Sudan’s defense minister, Abdul Rahim Mohamed Hussein, for war crimes and crimes against humanity in Darfur. There have been pictures coming out of the Blue Nile area that show the destruction that the North has caused to civilians. To quote an article on the Sudan Tribune’s website, “John Bradshaw, the executive director of the Enough Project, an advocacy group, said that the imagery is “consistent with reports from on the ground that the SAF has intentionally destroyed civilian communities in clear violation of the laws of war.” It looks like things are rapidly leaning towards another war of some sort. Please keep praying.

If you would like a recap of the happenings in the last month or so, you can find a good one here.

We have really been encouraged by getting to visit with most of our supporters these last few months. We can’t say enough how much all of your support (support= prayers, cards, emails, financial, care packages, Skype…) means to us. We really appreciate being together in this. A few of our financial supporters have generously increased their giving and some new financial supporters have come on board. Though we still need to make a final count things look well for us to indeed head back to Kenya on 15 January. It is such an honor to be able to “go” and for that we say THANK YOU!!!

We have begun the packing process and this reminded me how thankful I am for the 3 bag per person allowance for missionary/ngo fare with British Airways!